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Amjad Ali Khan's album is breezy, racy and breaks away from the classical mould
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Moksha by Amjad Ali Khan
EMI, CD, Rs. 350
If you picked up Moksha, sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan's latest album, hoping to sink into intense moments, it's not going to happen. Are you expecting long, contemplative alaaps, hoping to submit and lose track of the world around you? Then this surely is not the one you were looking for.
This album is very different; it moves away from the classical canon and is a collection of eight compositions, all of which are ragas composed by the maestro himself.
The pieces are in the semi-classical mode, exuding a lot of vibrant energy. All the pieces are racy and open with a breezy alaap. So breezy that it's over even before you savour it. For instance, the opening piece "Sandhya" is set to raga Shyama Gauri. It begins with the characteristic sarod meends, long and nuanced. And just when you unconsciously break into a "Wah!" over a poignant phrase, the main piece takes off rather loudly, only to completely offset the prayerful, opening notes.
It's a catchy tune. But why do some notes sound too perfect and flat? It's not so much the problem of a lack of ornamentation, but a discomfort that they don't come with a sense of history to them. The heartening thing is that they move on to a more soulful cluster of notes, as in the well thought out gamaks and meends.
I don't know if it's my personal weakness for Charukeshi or if it is the best piece in the album. It also probably captures my attention because it is the most elaborate piece in the album. Even with these doubts about my choice, it remains the most stirring one. The taans in the stream of conscious mode are truly beguiling. Their circular movement gives the piece one seamless feel.
Ganesh Kalyan, Maa Durga sound more or less like the flogged Yaman Kalyan and Durga, respectively. And so, unlike Shyam Gauri, they don't prepare you for something grand. Bhatyali (Amaan Ali Bangash) has a typical Bangla folk feel and at places also reminds one of veena maestro Chittibabu's repertoire. The finishing of the composition jars with the rest of piece, since it slips into the classical mode suddenly.
"Moksha", the composition based on raga Bahar, has a good sound to it. For one, it mixes sarod with the human voice. The tarana recited by Amjad Ali Khan (one assumes) has a raw, untamed texture to it.
Each of them is an expressive mood piece, marked by brevity. However, most of them, set to one rhythm frame, make the album sound extremely monotonous.
It is clear that the maestro made this album for a Western audience, but it works as a good entry point even for beginners back home.
The album was nominated for a Grammy in the "traditional world" category.
DEEPA GANESH
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